Lets Make Du'aa!! #LetsMakeDuaa

Bismillah.

Insha Allah, I wanted to take this opportunity to remind us to make lots and lots of du’aa in these remaining days in Ramadhan.

As shared in FB Live video on 15th May 2020
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=3020833061303839&id=100001315235466

Summary Topics:

• Finishing on a High
• Du’aa: Greatest Act of Worship
• Definitely Responded to..
• More and More (Don’t Stop!)
• Be Patient
• Ensure your Heart is Present
• Du’aa from Qur’an and Sunnah?
• Short but comprehensive 
• Consistency 
• For Self or for others?
• Best Times for du’aa?
• Du’aa includes zikir as well
• Relationship with Allah: TAQWA

Finishing on A High

If, like me, you have felt that you haven’t performed at your “Best” so far this Ramadhan, I want to remind all of us not to feel down, discouraged or demotivated

As ibn Taymiyyah says, “The lesson lies in perfection of the conclusion of a thing, not in the shortcomings of the beginning of it.”

And this is consistent with the saying of the Prophet ﷺ,

وَإِنَّمَا الأَعْمَالُ بِالْخَوَاتِيمِ

“And verily, all deeds are only judged upon their endings (how they end)”

(Narrated by Al-Bukhari)

Hasan al-Basri رحم الله said

“Improve your performance in what is left (of time) and you will be forgiven for that which has already passed. So take special care of the time you have left because you do not know when your soul will be turned over to Allah’s Mercy.”

Abu Hurairah narrated that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

إِذَا كَانَ أَوَّلُ لَيْلَةٍ مِنْ شَهْرِ رَمَضَانَ صُفِّدَتِ الشَّيَاطِينُ وَمَرَدَةُ الْجِنِّ وَغُلِّقَتْ أَبْوَابُ النَّارِ فَلَمْ يُفْتَحْ مِنْهَا بَابٌ. وَفُتِّحَتْ أَبْوَابُ الْجَنَّةِ فَلَمْ يُغْلَقْ مِنْهَا بَابٌ وَيُنَادِي مُنَادٍ يَا بَاغِيَ الْخَيْرِ أَقْبِلْ وَيَا بَاغِيَ الشَّرِّ أَقْصِرْ وَلِلَّهِ عُتَقَاءُ مِنَ النَّارِ وَذَلِكَ كُلَّ لَيْلَةٍ

"On the first night of the month of Ramadan, the Shayatin are shackled, the jinns are restrained, the gates of the Fires are shut such that no gate among them would be opened. The gates of Paradise are opened such that no gate among them would be closed, and a caller calls: 'O seeker of the good; come near!' and 'O seeker of evil; stop! 

For there are those whom Allah frees from the Fire.' And that is every night."

(Narrated by Ibnu Majah and At-Tirmidzi, graded hasan by Al-Albani in Sahih Al-Jami’)

This privelege happens every night. It could be ME, it could be YOU. 

It could be tonight, tomorrow night, the day after? Allahu a'lam.

But this hadith reminds us that there is always hope for us under-performers!

So Alhamdulillah ala kulli hal, what’s done is done.

If we feel it’s not so great, now is the time to pick ourselves up and get back into the game, finish off on a high.

If we feel we did pretty good, ask Allah to accept it, grant barakah in it, and grant us the istiqamah and strength to strive to do EVEN BETTER and finish on a high.

Du’aa: Greatest Act of Worship

So I really wanted to fire up this campaign on #LetsMakeDuaa

With the intention to encourage and emphasize the importance of this single deed which we can all do: Du’aa. The Prophet ﷺ said:

لَيْسَ شَىْءٌ أَكْرَمَ عَلَى اللَّهِ سُبْحَانَهُ مِنَ الدُّعَاءِ

There is nothing more noble in the sight of Allah other than Du’aa

(At-Tirmidzi, Al-Hakim)

Such a blessing for all of us!! Out of all the acts of worship that we can do, the one that is the most noble in the sight of Allah is something that all of us can do, regardless of our level of knowledge

Du’aa is something you can do in any language, at any time, in any state. The only exception is perhaps the toilet. Other than that, while you’re in the

o   Kitchen

o   Playing with your kids

o   Gardening

o   Doing house chores

·      

·        Of course there are some adab which will make the du’aa better and more ideal to be responded to (that may not necessarily be met during the states above), but the point here is, nothing stops you from du’aa

·        Why is du’aa so great? It is actualizing our tauhid, our Islam – our submission to the only One worthy of our worship. For example

o   Uluhiyyah – our servitude – realizing our role as slaves of Allah, who have no power or ability except what Allah grants us

o   Rububiyyah – the lordship of Allah – Knowing that Allah has power over all things

o   Asma Was-Sifat – the beautiful names and attributes of Allah – appealing to His Perfect Attributes, asking ar-Razzaq (all-Giving), Ar-Rahman Ar-Raheem (All-Merciful), Al-Kareem (All-Generous), Al-Hakeem (All-wise)

·         

Definitely Responded to..

Prophet Muhammad ﷺ  said:

مَا عَلَى الأَرْضِ مُسْلِمٌ يَدْعُو اللَّهَ بِدَعْوَةٍ إِلاَّ آتَاهُ اللَّهُ إِيَّاهَا أَوْ صَرَفَ عَنْهُ مِنَ السُّوءِ مِثْلَهَا مَا لَمْ يَدْعُ بِمَأْثَمٍ أَوْ قَطِيعَةِ رَحِمٍ ‏"‏ ‏.‏

 “There is not a Muslim upon the earth who calls upon Allah with any du’aa, except that Allah grants it to him,

or He turns away from him the like of it in evil;

as long as he does not supplicate for something sinful, or the severing of the ties of kinship.”

 فَقَالَ رَجُلٌ مِنَ الْقَوْمِ إِذًا نُكْثِرَ ‏.‏ قَالَ ‏"‏ اللَّهُ أَكْثَرُ ‏“

Upon hearing these words, a man from the people said:

“If that is the case, we will make MORE du’aa!”

He ﷺ said: “(With) Allah is even more!”

(Narrated by At-Tirmidzi who graded it hasan sahih)

Prophet Muhammad ﷺ  said:

إِنَّ رَبَّكُمْ تَبَارَكَ وَتَعَالَى حَيِيٌّ كَرِيمٌ يَسْتَحْيِي مِنْ عَبْدِهِ إِذَا رَفَعَ يَدَيْهِ إِلَيْهِ أَنْ يَرُدَّهُمَا صِفْرًا

“Your Lord is Most Modest and Most Generous;

when a man raises his hands to Him, He feels Ashamed to return them to him empty and rejected.”

(Narrated by At-Tirmidzi, Abu Daud)

وَقَالَ رَبُّكُمُ ادْعُونِي أَسْتَجِبْ لَكُمْ ۚ إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَسْتَكْبِرُونَ عَنْ عِبَادَتِي سَيَدْخُلُونَ جَهَنَّمَ دَاخِرِينَ

And your Lord said: "Invoke Me, [i.e. believe in My Oneness (Islamic Monotheism)] (and ask Me for anything) I will respond to your (invocation). Verily! Those who scorn My worship [i.e. do not invoke Me, and do not believe in My Oneness, (Islamic Monotheism)] they will surely enter Hell in humiliation!"

(Ghafir 60)

Be Patient

يُسْتَجَابُ لأَحَدِكُمْ مَا لَمْ يَعْجَلْ فَيَقُولُ قَدْ دَعَوْتُ رَبِّي فَلَمْ يَسْتَجِبْ لِي

“Each of your du’aa is granted, as long as he does not grow impatient and say

‘I made du’aa my Lord but it was not granted!””

(Narrated by Muslim)

Ensure your Heart is Present

Be mindful in what we ask of Allah.

Prophet Muhammad ﷺ  said:

ادْعُوا اللَّهَ وَأَنْتُمْ مُوقِنُونَ بِالإِجَابَةِ وَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّ اللَّهَ لاَ يَسْتَجِيبُ دُعَاءً مِنْ قَلْبٍ غَافِلٍ لاَهٍ

“Make du’aa (supplicate to) Allah while you are certain of being responded to, and know that Allah does not respond to a du’aa from the heart of one who is heedless.

(Narrated by At-Tirmidzi)

·        It’s not necessary that we MUST stick to du’aa from Qur’an and Sunnah. Sometimes there is benefit in going “unscripted” with our own personal du’aas because it truly comes from the heart. Something we truly need to ask Allah and therefore we are more sincere when we ask for it

·        The drawback about reading from du’aa books sometimes is that we struggle with reading the words, without our hearts being truly asking and being attached to what is being asked.

·        We end up “reading du’aa”, not “making du’aa”. We end up reading a script that has is devoid of meaning

·        The whole point of du’aa is asking from our Lord and our creator

Du’aa from Qur’an and Sunnah?

So it is not necessary that you make du’aa which were taught by the Qur’an and Sunnah. Any du’aa. As long as you are asking Allah, that is du’aa.

Having said that though, it is DEFINITELY better to make the du’aa taught to us by the Prophet ﷺ and also the du’aa of the other Prophets as Allah tells us of in the Qur’an.

Why? Let’s take for example du’aa from the hadith of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. As the most knowledgeable person in the religion, the Prophet knows best what we should ask Allah.

It’s interesting to note that majority of the hadith of the Prophet’s du’aa was not that “he taught” or “he instructed” the companion – a lot of these du’aa, he made himself.

For example, 

Umm Salamah (wife of the Prophet ﷺ ) narrated that: the du’aa (supplication) he said most frequently was:

يَا مُقَلِّبَ الْقُلُوبِ ثَبِّتْ قَلْبِي عَلَى دِينِكَ

“O Changer of the hearts, make my heart firm upon Your religion”

So Umm Salamah said: “O Messenger of Allah, why do you supplicate (this du’aa) so frequently?”  The Prophet ﷺ said,

يَا أُمَّ سَلَمَةَ إِنَّهُ لَيْسَ آدَمِيٌّ إِلاَّ وَقَلْبُهُ بَيْنَ أُصْبُعَيْنِ مِنْ أَصَابِعِ اللَّهِ فَمَنْ شَاءَ أَقَامَ وَمَنْ شَاءَ أَزَاغَ

O Umm Salamah! Verily, there is no human being except that his heart is between Two Fingers of the Fingers of Allah, so whomsoever He wills He makes steadfast, and whomever He wills He causes to deviate.

(Narrated by At-Tirmidzi who graded it hasan)

Sometimes we are given the opportunity to ask du’aa to Allah but we don’t know what to ask for.

Every time I look at du’aa of the Prophet ﷺ, especially when I listen to a lecture explaining the importance of that du’aa, only then I realize “oh yeah, that’s true, that is important! I need to ask for that”

Another example:

Umm Salamah narrated that after the Prophet ﷺ  performed the Subuh prayer, he would say:

اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَسْأَلُكَ عِلْمًا نَافِعًا وَرِزْقًا طَيِّبًا وَعَمَلاً مُتَقَبَّلاً

“O Allah, I ask You for beneficial knowledge, goodly provision and deeds that are accepted”

(ibn Majah)

If you think about it, in every single day of our lives, it basically consists of seeking one, two or three of these things. Either we are working or doing business (and that is good rizq), or we are learning something new (seeking knowledge, reading quran, reading books, attending lectures, webinars, reading articles, e-learning modules) hence the need to ask Allah for it to be knowledge which is BENEFICIAL for us, or at the very least, we will be doing our obligatory daily deeds – our prayers, our fasting and other deeds. And it’s not just about doing them, it’s about hoping it gets ACCEPTED.

And perhaps for us, it might be all three of the above. And therefore the Prophet ﷺ said this at the beginning of the day after Fajr to gear up for that positive, productivity mindset.

Learn and Memorize Du’aa from Qur’an and Sunnah

Encourage

Good advice from Sheikh Sajid Umar - how well you perform in the night will depend how well you prepare in the day. So he for example, learns the du'aa from the hadith of the Prophet in the day, so that at night can make more of that du'aa in solah.

So that's really good advice also - just spend some time in the day, choose a du'aa you like, something you feel resonates with you best and what you ask Allah, and repeat it, try to memorize it.

Another advice I want to share is: little by little. Step by step.

Don't get intimidated by the huge number of du'aa from the Qur'an and Sunnah. Sometimes you will see these compilations of 100 du'aa, 50 du'aa, and then we feel like we need to recite all of them.

Rather, if you want to learn or memorize on new du'aa, just focus on ONE du'aa. That's it, repeat it. Repeat it until it becomes easy and second nature, so your heart can be really present when you make that du'aa.

The Prophet himself made several du’aa repeatedly. So there’s nothing wrong in that, in fact it is a Sunnah!

In fact, that’s my goal past few days. I have been sharing some du’aa of the Prophet. Just one doa per picture, hashtag #PropheticDuaa. Memorize that, repeat, then add one more.

Then one more du'aa. If you do this consistently, let's say you memorize one du'aa per day, in one week that's seven new du'aa! Alhamulillah. 

Short but Comprehensive

Don’t feel disadvantaged if you don’t memorize long du’aa, because the Prophet ﷺ himself preferred short du’aa. Just repeat them!

Recommend: start with short, and keep repeating

عَنْ عَائِشَةَ، رضى الله عنها قَالَتْ كَانَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَسْتَحِبُّ الْجَوَامِعَ مِنَ الدُّعَاءِ وَيَدَعُ مَا سِوَى ذَلِكَ

'Aishah said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) loved short, comprehensive du’aa and abandoned other kinds.

(Abu Daud, graded sahih by Al-Albani)

Some of the greatest du’aa and the du’aa that he recited most frequently are very short and easy to memorize

Two Examples:

Anas ibn Malik narrated that the most frequent du’aa of the Prophet ﷺ was:

اللَّهُمَّ رَبَّنَا آتِنَا فِي الدُّنْيَا حَسَنَةً، وَفِي الآخِرَةِ حَسَنَةً، وَقِنَا عَذَابَ النَّارِ

“O Allah, our Lord! Grant us the good of this world, and the good of the Hereafter, and save us from the torment of the Hellfire.” (Al-Bukhari & Muslim)

In fact, even when it comes to Laylatul Qadar, the du’aa which Rasulullah ﷺ taught was so short and easy to memorize.

‘Aisyah narrated, “O Messenger of Allah, what is your view if I know when the Night of Al-Qadr is, then what should I say in it?”

Rasulullahﷺ  said: “Say the following supplication:

اللَّهُمَّ إِنَّكَ عَفُوٌّ تُحِبُّ الْعَفْوَ فَاعْفُ عَنِّي

“O Allah, You are Forgiving and love forgiveness, so forgive me” (Narrated by ibn Majah & At-Tirmidzi)

It’s interesting to note two things. Aisyah made a general inquiry about what deeds to do on Laylatul Qadar. The Prophet didn’t actively instruct her to stay up all night, recite Quran, pray, but he emphasized to say du’aa. And he didn’t even make a general recommendation of du’aa, he made this specific recommendation, which is such a short du’aa.

So just make it again and again! Don’t get bored.

Don't fret or feel sad if you haven't memorized many du'aa. Even if you know just a few short ones, just make them again and again. 

Remember: Allah doesn't get tired as long as you don't get tired.

Consistency

The Prophet ﷺ said,

"‏ خُذُوا مِنَ الْعَمَلِ مَا تُطِيقُونَ، فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ لاَ يَمَلُّ حَتَّى تَمَلُّوا

Do those deeds which you can do easily, as Allah will not get tired (of giving rewards) till you get bored and tired (of performing religious deeds).

(Al-Bukhari)

وَأَنَّ أَحَبَّ الأَعْمَالِ أَدْوَمُهَا إِلَى اللَّهِ، وَإِنْ قَلَّ

“.. and that the most beloved deed to Allah is the most consistently done, (regular and constant) even if it were little."

(Al-Bukhari)

For Self or For Others?

As a general rule, it is better to start with making du’aa for yourself first. This was the adab of the Prophet ﷺ

عَنْ أُبَىِّ بْنِ كَعْبٍ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم كَانَ إِذَا ذَكَرَ أَحَدًا فَدَعَا لَهُ بَدَأَ بِنَفْسِهِ

Ibn `Abbas narrated from Ubayy bin Ka`b that :

whenever the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) would mention someone and supplicate for him, he would begin with himself (ﷺ).

(At-Tirmidzi)

However it doesn't mean we shouldn't make du'aa for others.

In fact in another hadith, the Prophet at the same time also make du'aa for others as well!

Rather it just means we shouldn't neglect our own well-being - because at the end of the day we will be held accountable for ourselves first, on the day of judgment.

But at the same time, do dedicate time to make du'aa for others also.

Prophet Muhammad ﷺ  said:

دَعْوَةُ الْمَرْءِ الْمُسْلِمِ لأَخِيهِ بِظَهْرِ الْغَيْبِ مُسْتَجَابَةٌ، عِنْدَ رَأْسِهِ مَلَكٌ مُوَكَّلٌ كُلَّمَا دَعَا لأَخِيهِ بِخَيْرٍ، قَالَ الْمَلَكُ الْمُوَكَّلُ بِهِ: آمِينَ وَلَكَ بِمِثْلٍ

“The du’aa (supplication) of a Muslim for his brother at his back (in his absence) is mustajab (responded to);

As long as He is making a du’aa of goodness for his brother, an angel commissioned (by Allah) will be by his side, and (will also make du’aa) and say:

“Ameen, and May it be granted for you too!”

(Narrated by Muslim)

Best Times for Du’aa

Again, this can be anytime, anywhere - but there are times which it is more encouraged. I just wanted to highlight 3:

1. While Fasting
2. While in Sujood
3. In the last third of the night (before Fajr)

Fasting Person

Don’t restrict your du’aa only at night and only during tarawih, make sure you make lots of du’aa during the day as well. Because the du'aa of a fasting person is Mustajab (definitely responded to)!

Prophet Muhammad ﷺ  said:

ثَلاَثَةٌ لاَ تُرَدُّ دَعْوَتُهُمُ الصَّائِمُ حَتَّى يُفْطِرَ وَالإِمَامُ الْعَادِلُ وَدَعْوَةُ الْمَظْلُومِ يَرْفَعُهَا اللَّهُ فَوْقَ الْغَمَامِ وَيَفْتَحُ لَهَا أَبْوَابَ السَّمَاءِ وَيَقُولُ الرَّبُّ وَعِزَّتِي لأَنْصُرَنَّكَ وَلَوْ بَعْدَ حِينٍ

“There are three people whose du’aa (supplication)

is not rejected:

Ø  The fasting person until he breaks his fast;

Ø  the just leader; and

Ø  the supplication of the oppressed person;

Allah raises the du’aa up above the clouds and opens the gates of heaven to it. And the Lord says:

‘By My might, I shall surely Help you, even if it should be after a while.’”

(Narrated by At-Tirmidzi, ibn Majah)

Again, bear in mind that you can make du’aa anywhere at anytime. So keep doing it.

Sujud

Prophet Muhammad ﷺ  said::

أَقْرَبُ مَا يَكُونُ الْعَبْدُ مِنْ رَبِّهِ وَهُوَ سَاجِدٌ فَأَكْثِرُوا الدُّعَاءَ

“The closest that a slave  can be to his Lord is when he is in a state of sujood (prostration) -

Therefore, make lots of du’aa (in sujud)!”

(Narrated by Muslim)

We mentioned that you can make du’aa in your own language, but a question that pops up often is, can you make du’aa in your language during sujood? 

There is a difference of opinion on this; some say that it must be Arabic, because other language may invalidate the solah. But there are scholars such as Dr. Muhammad Salah who say it’s perfectly fine.

I personally prefer to stick to the safer side and say “I don’t vocalize du’aa other than Arabic”. 

But nothing to stop us from making du’aa outside of solah.

Last Third of the Night

As we all know, it is a highly HIGHLY encouraged Sunnah to wake up for our suhoor meals. And here I wanted to remind us that this time is in fact one of the BEST times to make du’aa.

Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:

يَنْزِلُ رَبُّنَا تَبَارَكَ وَتَعَالَى كُلَّ لَيْلَةٍ إِلَى السَّمَاءِ الدُّنْيَا حِينَ يَبْقَى ثُلُثُ اللَّيْلِ الآخِرُ فَيَقُولُ مَنْ يَدْعُونِي فَأَسْتَجِيبَ لَهُ وَمَنْ يَسْأَلُنِي فَأُعْطِيَهُ وَمَنْ يَسْتَغْفِرُنِي فَأَغْفِرَ لَهُ 

Our Lord, the Blessed and the Exalted, descends every night to the lowest heaven when one-third of the latter part of the night is left, and says: Who supplicates Me so that I may answer him? Who asks Me so that I may give to him? Who asks Me forgiveness so that I may forgive him?

(Muslim)

And that is why in surah Adz-Dzariyat when Allah describes the people of Taqwa, Allah says:

كَانُوا قَلِيلًا مِنَ اللَّيْلِ مَا يَهْجَعُونَ ﴿١٧﴾ وَبِالْأَسْحَارِ هُمْ يَسْتَغْفِرُونَ ﴿١٨﴾

They used to sleep but little by night [invoking their Lord (Allah) and praying, with fear and hope]. (17) And in the hours before dawn, they were (found) asking (Allah) for forgiveness, (18)

So what you can do is capitalize on this time as much as you can. While waiting for your food to heat up, or cool down, try to find ways to “smuggle” in some du’aa or dzikir as much as possible.

Du’aa includes Zikir as well

Generally speaking, there are two types of du’aa –

1. Du’aa al-mas’alah (asking from Allah) – this is the one we are familiar with. E.g. Forgive our sins, grant us safety in dunia and akhirah, accept our deeds

2. Du’aa al-ibadah (worship) – any act of worship that we do, including general zikir, is actually a form of du’aa as well.

So when we give the encouragement to make lots of du’aa we are encouraging to make as much zikir as possible, that is included as well. Keep making a lot of it

وَاذْكُرُوا اللَّـهَ كَثِيرًا لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ

“... and make dzikir (remember) of Allah much, so that you may be successful.” (Surah Al-Jumu’ah, 9)

عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ بُسْرٍ، أَنَّ أَعْرَابِيًّا، قَالَ لِرَسُولِ اللَّهِ ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ إِنَّ شَرَائِعَ الإِسْلاَمِ قَدْ كَثُرَتْ عَلَىَّ فَأَنْبِئْنِي مِنْهَا بِشَىْءٍ أَتَشَبَّثُ بِهِ ‏.‏ قَالَ ‏ "‏ لاَ يَزَالُ لِسَانُكَ رَطْبًا مِنْ ذِكْرِ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ ‏"

It was narrated from Abdullah bin Busr that a Bedouin said to the Messenger of Allah(ﷺ) said:

"The laws of Islam are burdensome for me. Tell me of something that I will be able to adhere to. He said: 'Always keep your tongue moist with the remembrance of Allah, the Mighty and Sublime.'"

(Narrated by ibn Majah and At-Tirmidzi who graded it hasan)

Salawat Upon the Prophet

This includes salawat as well

مَنْ صَلَّى عَلَىَّ صَلاَةً وَاحِدَةً صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ عَشْرَ صَلَوَاتٍ وَحُطَّتْ عَنْهُ عَشْرُ خَطِيئَاتٍ وَرُفِعَتْ لَهُ عَشْرُ دَرَجَاتٍ

Anas bin Malik said:

"The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: "Whoever sends salah upon me once, Allah (SWT) will send salah upon him tenfold, and will erase ten sins from him, and will raise him ten degrees in status.

(an-Nasa'ee)

In fact, the more selawat the better - even if you dedicate all of your du'aa for selawat!

عَنِ الطُّفَيْلِ بْنِ أُبَىِّ بْنِ كَعْبٍ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ، قَالَ كَانَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم إِذَا ذَهَبَ ثُلُثَا اللَّيْلِ قَامَ فَقَالَ ‏"‏ يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ اذْكُرُوا اللَّهَ اذْكُرُوا اللَّهَ جَاءَتِ الرَّاجِفَةُ تَتْبَعُهَا الرَّادِفَةُ جَاءَ الْمَوْتُ بِمَا فِيهِ جَاءَ الْمَوْتُ بِمَا فِيهِ ‏"‏ ‏.‏ قَالَ أُبَىٌّ قُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ إِنِّي أُكْثِرُ الصَّلاَةَ عَلَيْكَ فَكَمْ أَجْعَلُ لَكَ مِنْ صَلاَتِي فَقَالَ ‏"‏ مَا شِئْتَ ‏"‏ ‏.‏ قَالَ قُلْتُ الرُّبُعَ ‏.‏ قَالَ ‏"‏ مَا شِئْتَ فَإِنْ زِدْتَ فَهُوَ خَيْرٌ لَكَ ‏"‏ ‏.‏ قُلْتُ النِّصْفَ ‏.‏ قَالَ ‏"‏ مَا شِئْتَ فَإِنْ زِدْتَ فَهُوَ خَيْرٌ لَكَ ‏"‏ ‏.‏ قَالَ قُلْتُ فَالثُّلُثَيْنِ ‏.‏ قَالَ ‏"‏ مَا شِئْتَ فَإِنْ زِدْتَ فَهُوَ خَيْرٌ لَكَ ‏"‏ ‏.‏ قُلْتُ أَجْعَلُ لَكَ صَلاَتِي كُلَّهَا ‏.‏ قَالَ ‏"‏ إِذًا تُكْفَى هَمَّكَ وَيُغْفَرُ لَكَ ذَنْبُكَ ‏"‏ ‏.‏ قَالَ أَبُو عِيسَى هَذَا حَدِيثٌ حَسَنٌ

At-Tufail bin Ubayy bin Ka'b narrated from his father who said:

"When a third of the night had passed, the Messenger of Allah(s.a.w) stood and said: 'O you people! Remember Allah! Remember Allah! The Rajifah is coming, followed by the Radifah, death and what it brings is coming, death and what it brings is coming!'" Ubayy said: 

"I said: 'O Messenger of Allah! Indeed I say very much Salat for you. How much of my Salat should I make for you?' He said: 'As you wish.'" 

[He said:] "I said: 'A fourth?' He said: 'As you wish. But if you add more it would be better for you.' 

I said: 'Then half?' He said: 'As you wish. And if you add more it would be better [for you].'" [He said:] 

"I said: 'Then two-thirds? 'He said: 'As you wish, but if you add more it would be better for you.' 

I said: 'Should I make all of my Salat for you?' 

He said: 'Then your problems would be solved and your sins would be forgiven.'"

(Narrated by At-Tirmidhi who graded it Hasan)

Adab

The Hadith of the prophet also mention other matters regarding du’aa, especially on the adab which are recommended – these are not necessary all the time, but are encouraged because these are what was taught in the Sunnah. Some simple examples:

• start by praising Allah
• start by sending salawat upon the Prophet
• raising your hands
• make tawassul (means) by mentioning the names and attributes of Allah, by mentioning our good deeds, admitting our sins

And there are many more. I won't go into them for the interest of time and brevity, but Ihighly encourage you to look these up and act upon them as much as you are able to. 

#LetsMakeDuaa

Finally I would like to conclude by reminding us that by making du’aa, we are improving our relationship with Allah – We yearn more for His Mercy, we are more in need of Him, we fear His Punishment.

This is essentially what TAQWA is, and that is the whole reason behind fasting in the first place

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ الصِّيَامُ كَمَا كُتِبَ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ

O you who believe! Observing As-Saum (the fasting) is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, that you may become Al-Muttaqun (the pious - see V. 2:2).

(Al-Baqarah 183)

So yes let us continue making the best out of this Ramadhan in the remaining days that are left.